Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Big fun tying up some virgins!

I mean, Virgin-Bound Excitement!

Yeah, that's it. Forget that other one; it's not as accurate.

I've signed a contract with a sailboat charter company for ten days on a Lagoon 380 and sent them a deposit. I've bought plane tickets there and, unfortunately, back. Next June, if you're looking for me, you'd better catch me early in the month because during the last two weeks of June, I'll be in the beautiful Virgin Islands with some friends.

Yep, friends. My exquisite wife and boon companion, the inestimable Ronnie, has agreed to hold down the fort here at home while I have some boys-only time. And, unlike the first several decades of my life, I actually have enough male friends to need more than a two-man daysailer for such an adventure. Hooray for me!

Friends are good.

Fun is good.

We might be doing something approximately like this:

My friends are the shiznit and this is gonna be the most fun you can have with your clothes on, even if we're occasionally in a state of deshabille or, possibly, even complete nudity. Sun, sand, warm water, tropical fish, rum, trade winds...

4 comments:

ahhh, so jealous! My husband and I bareboated the time he proposed to me and then for our honeymoon. I've been looking into charter companies to take the family. Would you mind telling me which you went with?Donkeys? I heard it was goats ;-)Jess

I've chartered with just about everybody over the years. I've totally given up on all the "first-tier" companies. Charlie and Ginny sold The Moorings and now it's just part of the super-conglomerate and their prices are ridiculous and their service is inferior. Sunsail gave me terribly poor service at top-of-the-line prices, etc. I like BVI Yacht Charters; I'd charter with them again. However, for this trip, I'm chartering with Conch Charters. I've been tempted to try them before but it didn't work out in the past. This time, it did.

For our honeymoon, Ronnie and I chartered a Swan out of St. Martin from Swan Charters. They were fabulous and I'd certainly use them again, if money were no object; but they make Moorings et al. look cheap. My wallet says, "Ouch!"

We did a family trip in 2001 with BVI Yacht Charters and liked their operation very much. I'm not a fan of Beneteaus in general but for a family cruise of a week or two, they're perfectly fine.

Ten years ago, in 2000, Ronnie stayed home with the girls and I had a boys-only cruise in the Virgins with my old college pal Bob. In the world of monohulls, I love the Freedom line and we wanted to try a Freedom 35 to compare it to the older Freedom 38 which I liked very much. At that time, Sunsail was chartering Freedoms so we went with them. The two of us had a grand old time and I enjoyed the F35, although I decided I prefer the F38; but the important thing was that the two of us had a great time, despite the terrible customer service from Sunsail.

This time it'll be several friends who are also unschooling dads and we'll be on that big, roomy Lagoon 38 cat. Look out, BVI!